Who Is Dan Buettner? Founder of Blue Zones

Where Dan Buettner Is Now

Dan Buettner serves as the founder of Blue Zones and continues to lead ongoing research for the organization, as detailed by Fort Worth Report.

• Current role: Founder and research leader at Blue Zones Fort Worth Report
• Organization: Blue Zones and National Geographic Fellow / Explorer Fort Worth Report, Worth
• Known for: Coining the term 'blue zone' and authoring books including The Blue Zones Solution, The Blue Zones of Happiness, Blue Zones Kitchen, Blue Zones Challenge, and Blue Zones Secrets for Living Longer National Geographic, Fort Worth Report
• Recent news: Commented on Brett McClung's understanding of community health strategies and healthcare system financial returns Fort Worth Report

Career and Background

Dan Buettner is an American journalist, author, and researcher as well as a National Geographic explorer and National Geographic Fellow, according to AS USA and Fort Worth Report.

He is the author of bestselling books published by National Geographic books, which include The Blue Zones Solution, The Blue Zones of Happiness, Blue Zones Kitchen, Blue Zones Challenge, and Blue Zones Secrets for Living Longer, as documented by Fort Worth Report.

Buettner coined the term 'blue zone,' and along with his team, identified five regions where people live longer, healthier lives: Okinawa, Sardinia, Ikaria, the Nicoya Peninsula, and Loma Linda, as reported by National Geographic and Worth.

Longevity Research and the Bolotana Project

With funding from the National Geographic Society, Buettner led a National Geographic project that identified a new blue zone centered on the Sardinian village of Bolotana, as reported by National Geographic.

Buettner and Gianni Pes assembled a research team including gerontologist S. Jay Olshansky to conduct scientific age verification in Bolotana. Buettner stated that Bolotana is, by some measures, the most extraordinary blue zone because its centenarian numbers are increasing rather than waning, calling the data from Bolotana a treasure chest for understanding human longevity National Geographic.

Buettner observed that residents in Bolotana eat beans, pastas, potatoes, and garden produce without importing much American junk food. He stated that men in Bolotana stay home and share the stress load with their wives, and that residents get medium-range cardio daily without thinking about it due to steep terrain and a lack of cars, according to National Geographic.

Buettner also claimed that achieving the longevity levels of Bolotana could save the United States two or three trillion dollars from its annual healthcare budget, as documented by National Geographic.

What Dan Buettner Stands For and Community Initiatives

Buettner stated that when looking at places where people live the longest, healthiest, and happiest lives, it always comes down to an environment that makes healthy choices easy or unavoidable, as noted by Fort Worth Report. He stated that only 20% of a person's lifespan is determined by genetics, with the remaining 80% shaped by environment and behavior Worth.

Through the Blue Zones Project, Buettner collaborates directly with city governments, developers, and business leaders to transform communities. In his own company, Buettner removed parking reimbursements and paid employees who biked, walked, or used public transit, according to Worth.

Buettner shared data showing that neighborhoods without billboard advertising have a 15% lower average BMI compared to those with visible billboards, and stated that the true solution to longevity is in how we build our homes, design our cities, and structure our days, rather than in a pill, as reported by Worth.

Buettner stated that exercise as a public health initiative has failed in America and noted that people in Blue Zones move naturally rather than exercising, as documented by Worth. On the ZOE podcast, Buettner stated that Blue Zones populations avoid life-shortening diseases at higher rates rather than having superior genetics or discipline, and he noted that residents maintain gardens behind their homes and do their own housework without technological conveniences, according to AS USA.